Introduction
The rate of crimes committed by children under the age of eighteen years is alarming. Kids are at a more risk of joining the wrong groups that teach them wrong manners or behaviours that eventually lead them into a criminal life. The era of social media has made it easy for individuals from different places to interact and share ideas. In the past it was easy to prevent some of the cases that are witnessed but the social media has made it harder since the kids are learning risky behaviours from others online. This has resulted in different institutions working individually and collectively to ensure that the issue is neutralized. This paper looks at how the family, education and law enforcement institutions are addressing the problem.
Description of Juvenile Crime
Juvenile crime is part of criminal law involved with crimes of offenders who are below the age of eighteen years. This kind of offenders receive less strict forms of punishment than the ones adults get plus instead of going through the adult criminal system, they are taken through the juvenile justice system. Therefore, even though majority of the offences by the minors are similar to the ones committed by adults, the former group is subject to different laws as well as procedures than the latter group. The law and procedures are primarily governed by the state law plus regulated on a state by state basis with majority of states enacting juvenile criminal codes via legislation (Valuiskov et al., 2017). This means that a state determines the rules in how a juvenile may be scrutinized, their arrest, conditions for their supervision, restitution orders plus other aspects of juvenile criminal procedure.
Many kids are mischievous but sometimes it can go to extents that the behaviour turns into a crime. Since they do not belong in a penitentiary with grownups, plus possess a greater likelihood of rehabilitation, there are rules designed to handle them (Mears & Pickett, 2019). The rate of juvenile crime has increased over the last several years and it has become an issue that needs addressing. There is a section of individuals who attribute that to the social evils present in the society, for instance, racism and sexism, which adds pressure on the minors. In an attempt of improving their status, they end up getting involved in unlawful activities. Early intervention is important as it prevents the onset of such behaviours as well as facilitates the youth’s resilience’s development.
How Family, Education and Law Enforcement Have addressed the issue of Juvenile Crime
The family environment of a child determines their development regarding behaviour. One that is brought up in a hostile home has a higher chance of picking up the abusive behaviours (Valuiskov et al., 2017). Many parents have realized this and have decided to evaluate the conditions their children grow up in. Apart from assessing the home surroundings, many have opted for counselling in case there are issues at home. This ensures that the factors that may result in the kids choosing crime are eliminated. Additionally, parents continue to encourage their children to speak up on the issues that trouble them, for instance, bullying at school. Such issues push kids to join criminal gangs to ensure that they gain respect of their peers and eventually end up participating in criminal activities.
The institution of education has also been instrumental in trying to reduce the rate of crime among minors. Schools have two ways of dealing with the issue, including prevention measures and rehabilitation measures (Valuiskov et al., 2017). On one hand, to prevent children under the age of eighteen years from committing crime, they encourage them to join groups and programs that promote valuable activities like sports and church. Being part of a group ensures that someone has people watching over them and also they do not become idle and be vulnerable to temptations. On the other hand, to rehabilitate those who have already gone through the juvenile justice system, the teachers arrange for counselling which helps the kids avoid factors that led them to their situation initially.
The law enforcement has not been left behind in the issue of addressing juvenile crime. With the understanding that although they are offenders, they are also children who need constant guidance on different things, the law enforcement establish programs and visit schools and different places in the society. During these meetings, they target the youth and speak to them concerning the importance of obeying the law (Van Dijk et al., 2019). The children also learn ways in which they can escape the traps in the society that may lead them in wrong paths. Such ways include reporting to adults whenever someone entices and encourages them to commit criminal activities.
Difference in Past and Modern Approaches to the Issue
In the past the different institutions looked at the issue with much judgment but now they are trying to focus more on the fact that the juvenile offenders are still kids. For instance, in a family setting, children who committed crimes in the past were disowned and parents became ashamed of them. The feeling of not wanted is a factor to why the rate of crimes among minors has increased and reached heights not ever envisioned. If a child who has done something wrong feels like they are no longer accepted by their families, they end up feeling discouraged to improve on their behaviours. Studies have shown that many kids who had gone through the juvenile justice system and served time went back to criminal acts (Valuiskov et al., 2017). The reason for this is because they lacked a home support that would allow them back into the community.
Even adults who have been in jail before need support of their families to ensure that they no longer go back to their past ways. This goes a long way to show that kids who are still developing need more of such support (Van Dijk et al., 2019). Apart from support that is provided more by parents of today, families have realized that the home situation can have a great impact on the behaviours of the child. This has made many embrace counselling and encouraging their kids to be more vocal to gauge where they are at mentally-wise. This is unlike the past where parents viewed home situations as not a factor in high juvenile crime rates.
Law enforcement in the past has had a hard time dealing with the issue of crime among minors and young people in general. There have been many cases of police prejudice to the extent the relationship between them and the society was ruined (Legewie & Fagan, 2019). Having a poor relationship with the society limited how much they could do in their attempt to find the main factor behind the issue. In the present times, the police have had campaigns that bring them closer to the communities as the closeness is important. For some time, young people felt like the law enforcement was trying to put them down (Javdani, 2019). Their theory holds as there is immense proof of young people even at below the age of eighteen years being killed in cold blood without reasonable cause, as suggested by (Gerlinger & Hipp, 2020). Others as soon as they turned eighteen found their way to the prisons where they served for crimes they claim to have not committed, as suggested by (Gerlinger & Hipp, 2020). A young kid with knowledge of such issues and cases is unlikely to desire to listen to whatever law enforcement promotes.
The law enforcement in the present times has eliminated another barrier in their efforts to rehabilitate the youth which is illiteracy regarding the law. Many kids at schools have little or no knowledge concerning their roles and responsibilities as it pertains to the law. Precisely, many think that they cannot be held accountable of many of the wrong acts they do because they are still young (Mears & Pickett, 2019). Apart from that, they have failed to learn about the different laws, policies and procedures of the states they reside in. Law enforcement has decided to actively and intentionally ensure that kids at schools learn about the issue. They are constantly holding meetings from school to school in various states in the country teaching young people how they should behave. This approach has helped reduce many cases of juvenile crime that happen due to lack of knowledge. Young people even below eighteen years old understand what is right or wrong according to law.
The institution of education has also improved on how it approaches the issue of juvenile crime. Schools used harsh punishments on children who were found to have participated in wrong acts (Van Dijk et al., 2019). They even went to the extent of discontinuing some of the students which ensured that most ended up in the streets. In the streets, they are vulnerable as they are also trying to find a way to cope up which resulted in many joining wrong groups. Schools failed to teach or encourage learning about the juvenile justice system and the roles and responsibilities of the kids as they believed that it was the duty of their parents or guardians.
In the present times, much has changed regarding the approach the education system addresses the issue. Many schools have incorporated studies on law in their programs and it is compulsory for all the kids at school to learn (Mears & Pickett, 2019). Knowledge on different issues is important and more essential when it comes to law. The reason for this is because a child will understand the limits and how far their actions can go. Every child understands that they are young and that they deserve a special treatment from the society which includes being forgiven for their actions.
However, it is also important if they learn that if their actions affect other negatively then they can be punished by the laws governing the states they live in. Apart from incorporation of law in school programs, teachers now understand that the problem of juvenile crime cannot only be handled by the families. The issue affects the whole society as the teachers are parents too and their kids can be influenced by the others (Van Dijk et al., 2019). Therefore, many teachers are using their platform to encourage kids to stay away from wrong groups that may lead them into crime and suggest alternative sports and church groups.
Connection between Family, Education and Law Enforcement
The family, education and law enforcement institutions have identified that the children are the future of the nation. Therefore, it is their responsibility to provide the kids with adequate guidance that will guarantee a good future for them. Adults have undergone the same stages the young people are going through. They understand how the minds of the kids work and what can lead them astray (Mears & Pickett, 2019). Working together as a unit ensures that the initiatives are more effective and have a higher success rate. For instance, if a child is involved in activities that appear to lead to risky limits. A teacher, a parent and a police officer work together to ensure a particular individual understands the direction to which they may be heading. In addition to that, they help them understand that there are consequences of their actions especially if they harm or hurt other people.
The three institutions complement one another’s approach to the problem. For instance, as mentioned earlier, most of the juvenile crime cases result from a lack of knowledge about law. The approach of both education system and the law enforcement on the issue is to educate about laws and policies. The family institution complements the other two institutions through parents or guardians who emphasize on what the kids learn at school (Mears & Pickett, 2019). Additionally, they encourage the children to have a better relationship with the police. This working together eliminates the chances of having loopholes in their approaches as they improve on what the others are doing. On one hand, parents understand their kids better who make it easier for teachers at school to find ways to put their message across. On the other hand, educators at school understand the ideal methods they use to make individual students understand a topic at class. Such piece of information is important to the police when they set up programs to speak to the young people at schools about the topic.
Conclusion
The issue of juvenile crime is a topic that needs to be addressed by more than one institution in the society. Young people are the future and need to be guided instead of being punished in a manner that disregards the fact that they are young and still learning. Different individuals in the society, for instance, teachers, police and parents have to unite in the fight against crime in the society. When the three work together, it eliminates the occurrence of incidents such as law enforcement killing young people in the community. The approaches to the issue have also changed as the institutions employ different methods.
For instance, in the past, it was not normal to hear that kids are learning about the laws and policies that govern the states they live in. Most of them felt like they would not be punished by law for their actions. Now kids understand that they have a responsibility of being good citizens and co-exist with others peacefully. The lack of knowledge pushed many into committing different crimes which turned out to ruin their lives at a very young age. The new knowledge is important and has ensured that they go through their childhood stage and mature to be good citizens in the country.
References
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Mears, D. P., & Pickett, J. T. (2019). Voting preferences and perceived juvenile crime trends: Examining racial and political differences. Criminal Justice Policy Review, 30(6), 840–861. Web.
Valuiskov, N. V., Bondarenk, L. V., & Arutiunian, A. D. (2017). Juvenile crime: Current state and dynamics. Journal of Politics and Law, 10(4), 225. Web.
van Dijk, A. J., Herrington, V., Crofts, N., Breunig, R., Burris, S., Sullivan, H., Middleton, J., Sherman, S., & Thomson, N. (2019). Law enforcement and public health: Recognition and enhancement of joined-up solutions. The Lancet, 393(10168), 287–294. Web.